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THE FARM THAT FEEDS US

FOLLOW A FAMILY FARM THROUGH ALL FOUR SEASONS

This idyllic vision reflects broad agricultural reality about as well as “Old MacDonald.” (Nonfiction. 7-9)

Activities on a generic family farm through the seasons.

In dry, impersonal language Castaldo acknowledges the existence of corporate, monocultural farms but thereafter sticks to a traditional paradigm, with the bland implication that small family farms like the one explored are the sort that really provide us “with the food we eat.” She and Hsu proceed to profile a farm run, in the tidy, bright illustrations, by a white family with two brown-skinned associates or employees (plus some seasonal labor). They are depicted cultivating small crops of organically raised fruits and veggies for local sale, tending an apiary for pollination and honey production, and also raising livestock for milk, eggs (gathered by hand), wool, and/or “meat” (the last of which is never seen butchered or headed for the table or slaughterhouse). The author’s descriptions of organic practices and season-specific activities include looks at limited varieties of common or heirloom breeds and cultivars as well as sidelines like pick-your-own strawberries, and she closes by urging readers toward greener behaviors like buying local and regarding “use by” dates as just guidelines. For a look at small farming today, Nikki Tate’s Down to Earth: How Kids Help Feed the World (2017) is a less systematic but far less parochial alternative.

This idyllic vision reflects broad agricultural reality about as well as “Old MacDonald.” (Nonfiction. 7-9)

Pub Date: May 19, 2020

ISBN: 978-0-7112-4253-1

Page Count: 80

Publisher: Words & Pictures

Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020

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I AM GRAVITY

An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe.

An introduction to gravity.

The book opens with the most iconic demonstration of gravity, an apple falling. Throughout, Herz tackles both huge concepts—how gravity compresses atoms to form stars and how black holes pull all kinds of matter toward them—and more concrete ones: how gravity allows you to jump up and then come back down to the ground. Gravity narrates in spare yet lyrical verse, explaining how it creates planets and compresses atoms and comparing itself to a hug. “My embrace is tight enough that you don’t float like a balloon, but loose enough that you can run and leap and play.” Gravity personifies itself at times: “I am stubborn—the bigger things are, the harder I pull.” Beautiful illustrations depict swirling planets and black holes alongside racially diverse children playing, running, and jumping, all thanks to gravity. Thorough backmatter discusses how Sir Isaac Newton discovered gravity and explains Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity. While at times Herz’s explanations may be a bit too technical for some readers, burgeoning scientists will be drawn in.

An in-depth and visually pleasing look at one of the most fundamental forces in the universe. (Informational picture book. 7-9)

Pub Date: April 15, 2024

ISBN: 9781668936849

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Tilbury House

Review Posted Online: May 4, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2024

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HOW TO EXPLAIN CODING TO A GROWN-UP

From the How To Explain Science series

A lighthearted first look at an increasingly useful skill.

Grown-ups may not be the only audience for this simple explanation of how algorithms work.

Taking a confused-looking hipster parent firmly in hand, a child first points to all the computers around the house (“Pro Tip: When dealing with grown-ups, don’t jump into the complicated stuff too fast. Start with something they already know”). Next, the child leads the adult outside to make and follow step-by-step directions for getting to the park, deciding which playground equipment to use, and finally walking home. Along the way, concepts like conditionals and variables come into play in street maps and diagrams, and a literal bug stands in for the sort that programmers will inevitably need to find and solve. The lesson culminates in an actual sample of very simple code with labels that unpack each instruction…plus a pop quiz to lay out a decision tree for crossing the street, because if “your grown-up can explain it, that shows they understand it!” That goes for kids, too—and though Spiro doesn’t take the logical next step and furnish leads to actual manuals, young (and not so young) fledgling coders will find plenty of good ones around, such as Get Coding! (2017), published by Candlewick, or Rachel Ziter’s Coding From Scratch (2018).

A lighthearted first look at an increasingly useful skill. (glossary) (Informational picture book. 7-9)

Pub Date: Oct. 10, 2023

ISBN: 9781623543181

Page Count: 32

Publisher: Charlesbridge

Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023

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